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Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Kennedy's thoughts on Canada's Ideas

..from Health Care to various other ideas & implemented plans for the people,Ted Kennedy had admiration for the Guts Canada has shown in supporting it's own People............. Thanks Mr Kennedy for having the Guts to acknowledge this:

Ted Kennedy is acknowledged, as an ally of Canada's Health Care & other Social Plans

Wed Aug 26, 5:48 P

MONTREAL - Prominent Canadians paid tribute to Ted Kennedy as a longstanding ally of this country, full of admiration for Canadian policies on everything from medicare to the refusal to invade Iraq.

One former ambassador to Washington said it felt like there was a "brotherly Canadian" sitting in U.S. Congress.

Former prime minister Brian Mulroney recalled how the dean of the Senate swam against the tide of public opinion in his own country, offering rare support for a single-payer health system like Canada's.

He also described Kennedy as an ally in the fight for economic sanctions against South Africa's apartheid regime, and on environmental issues.

"He was deeply interested in our policies on South Africa and the liberation of Nelson Mandela because they ran counter to the policies of the United States and the Reagan administration at the time," Mulroney said in an interview with The Canadian Press.

"Ted Kennedy is probably going to be remembered as the greatest American senator in modern history. There'd be few in the history of the United States that would have a legislative record that could rival his."

Mulroney was close friends with Kennedy, the last surviving brother of a fabled political dynasty who has died after a battle with brain cancer.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper was far more succinct in his reaction to Kennedy's passing. His office issued a one-line statement offering "sympathies and condolences to the family and friends of Senator Ted Kennedy."

Raymond Chretien, the former Canadian ambassador to the U.S., suggested Kennedy should almost be considered an honourary Canadian.

"It's almost as if he were a brotherly Canadian in the American Senate," Chretien said. "He was a good supporter of our issues."

Mulroney warmly remembered the hard-driving Kennedy, whose brother John was slain while president in 1963 and other brother Robert was gunned down during a presidential bid in 1968.

He said Kennedy, 77, wouldn't like the sniping at Canadian health care being done by opponents of President Barack Obama, saying Kennedy "thought that the Canadian health-care system was a very high-class one."

The former Conservative leader remembered Kennedy as "supportive and generous" with a touch of innocence about him, although that didn't stop him from being a tenacious battler on the Senate floor.

"But there wasn't an ounce of malice in him," Mulroney added. "He never had a mean word to say about anybody."

Ex-NDP Leader Ed Broadbent met Kennedy in the 1980s and described him as "very progressive right across the board."

He said they shared a lot of the same values and discussed health care many times.

"What struck me most about him was his value commitment," Broadbent said in an interview.

"Whether it's workers' rights or, later in his years, concern about the handicapped - anything of a progressive nature - he was instinctively on that side."

Kennedy's immense political skills coupled with his "Irish warmth" helped him get things done.

"I think, frankly, it was his capacity for affection for people . . . that enabled him to work so effectively with the Republicans. They liked him personally even though many of them detested his politics."

Broadbent said Kennedy's death will cost Obama in his battle to reform U.S. health care.

"They had a real chance of winning because of his skills and because of his passionate commitment," Broadbent said. "They're gone now."

Chretien said Kennedy was always keen to hear Canada's point of view on everything from health care, to fisheries disputes, to border issues.

"He was always prepared to listen, always prepared to understand our point of view."

On the Iraq war, Chretien says, Kennedy was among the few prominent American politicians who agreed with Canada's decision to stay out.

Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty said Kennedy leaves a significant legacy as "a powerful influence for good among small-l liberals around the world."

"And I think that if you take a look at his record, arguably, he's been the most influential Kennedy, given the influence for good he's had in everything from civil rights to health care to education, international relations as well.

I would Imagine that a lot of Country's around the world would be impressed by Canada's Health Care, .........Norway & Scandinavia being the exceptions ,they Do take care of their People & just don't pass normal Political Rhetoric Bullshit ,about it,.............It works with it's flaws & all,but guess what ,You do get looked after,unlike some of the press clippings to the contrary...... Big Business is what keeps everyone from having Health Care......Why Do you think many citizens from down south go to either Canada or Mexico to get looked after.?? Everyone on this Planet ,should never go hungry ,nor should they be deprived of medicine....because of their Monetary Status,...but that my friends' is just dismissed as ideology............. HF&RV

10 comments:

He was a ray of sanity in country controlled by madness. Americans are ready to fight to the death to NOT have universal health care. How fucking insane are they? Sad to say but paranoia has struck so deep that anything that just has to be good for them must actually be very bad for them and it s all because some people making a buck is more important than everyone being healthy.

Wow! What the hell do you know about what the Majority of Americans think. 60 % are against Obama's plan.He has now almost buckled under to giving Americans the Option to keep what they have as far as coverage goes or to take the Gov't's plan. Obama is trying to screw up the Medicaire Option, with his plan. Not all Anericans are deaf and dumb! He admitted he, as well as many Congressmen, have not read the whole plan, YET, but is trying to rush it through. It won't pass unless revised, even then! I as an American Citizen for 45 years, (formerly a Montrealer) have been on Medicaire for 10 years and quite satisfied with the coverage for both my wife and I. (In California and Florida) We've had several Major surgeries. As you well know, nothing is FREE! I'll pay the 20% that Medicaire doesn't! To come up with a plan to cover MILLIONS of Illegal immigrants and foist it on us TAXPAYERS and Legal citizens, to cover them while they break the System, is insanity! Take the Socialism and stuff it! We don't line up here, or wait for Major surgery and I see my Doctor regularly, as do many others. The Government needs to get a grip on the Drug Companies and Pharmacies who are raping the sick! They also need to Jail the Doctors who are cheating Medicaire. Yes, there are problems, but Socialized medicine is not wanted. Poor citizens who need medical service are covered by 'Indigent Care' programs, in most States. The U.S. government has proven that they can't run a BUSINESS efficiently. I'll vote against any such idea, given the chance, but Obama wouldn't put it on a ballot. He's a short timer! End of rant.sez Victah

You can shovel it all day long with all the endorsements, facts, and figures you want, Victor, but just your fear of illegal immigrants being a good reason to not have universal health care just illustrates even more how screwed up American logic has become. Sorry, but from here you look like a nation of retards.

Ken I agree mostly with Victah. The system in Canada is flawed. It is falling apart and is NOT so cheap

Yup money is a motivator but I do not wait months for potential life threatening treatment or for a blue moon for routine electives. What will ruin it here is if the government gets involved. They have enough of a problem and little experience running anything especially since this government representatives have never run a paper route let alone large corporations (GM etc), banking or financial institutions. God forbid we should let them determine life/death health situations or patern their ideas on Canada's crappy system. Obama print more money to pay for everything. Let the next generation really pay for it.

Access to care in the United States has worsened since the fund’s first report card in 2006 as more people — some 75 million — are believed to lack adequate health insurance or are uninsured altogether. And within the nation, the report found, the cost and quality of care vary drastically.

The findings are likely to provide supporting evidence for the political notion that the nation’s health care system needs to be fixed. Both presumptive presidential nominees, Senator John McCain and Senator Barack Obama, argue that the country needs to get more value for its health care money, even if they do not agree on what changes would be most effective. But few people these days defend the status quo. http://allcountries.org/health/usa_health_care_2008_nyt.html

............and the printing of money was started many moons back to finance war.Then came the collapse (orchestrated I believe)of the global economy,under the previous admin,so inheriting such a large deficit,certainly makes things tough on any new administration

It is up to the majority of Americans to decide what health care plan they want for their citizens. Here in Australia, the Medicare system runs smoothly and provides good health care to all. However, it is not perfect and many Australians (including myself) chose to have private health care cover to guarantee the option of choosing the doctors and hospitals they wish to be treated in, and also not be on waiting lists for surgery. Personally, most Australians accept the responsibility and are happy to pay the 1.25% medicare levy to ensure all citizens have medical assistance, without the stigmatism of being a "welfare" case. But bottom line, like Canadians, it is the system we elected to adopt for our own people, for better or worse. Americans, like any other nation have the right to evaluate their own domestic needs and priorities without the criticism of non-Americans.....Diane

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRdLpem-AAsHello kenmcl, Copy and paste the above site (U-Tube) and listen to the best explanation of a comparison between Socialized Medicine and coverage vs Medicaire, by none other than Ronald Reagan, when attempts were made during his Presidency. The people refused the idea of Socialized medicine and the congressman who introduced the BILL was voted out of office. Obama couldn't hold a candle to Reagan. Listen and Learn! sez Victah

Why would Obama want to hold a candle to Reagan? Reaganomics killed the average American worker, paved the road for the Wal-Martization of the American economy, opened the door for NAFTA and the Asian sweatshops and basically kicked the average American Joe in the nuts who by that point had learned to like it.

Anyway, the tragedy is that millions are without adequate health care coverage because of a propaganda war over profits. Who says the Canadian system is falling apart? Well, no one is pushing that concept harder than the insurance companies who stand to gain enormously if Canadian Health Care was privatized (many of whom are owned by American interests).

Here is an interesting video showing the Canadian point of view, seems we spend less per person on health care than the US and we have everyone covered! Everyone in Health Care here seems to understand the lies being promoted in the US.

Opinions and comments are like a$$hole$ everyone has one and they are usually different...That not saying I have any experience here.

The Canada health care refused to keep my father ticking at 88 but at least kept him comfortable at the end. I think since I could not understand the doctor's foreign dialect. His "own" private assigned doctor never bothered to show up at the end....She was too busy seeing countless patients due to the Canada health care system requirements..

Like everything else here in the US the lobbyist will reign. But then again why does the world want to come here to live go figure..

Bill Clinton flew directly from Kennedy funeral to speak at the CNE ,.here's what he thought of Canadian Health Care System: from Toronto 2 hours ago: TORONTO — Former U.S. president Bill Clinton is expressing hope that his country will follow Canada's lead and adopt a publicly-funded health care system.

A joke-cracking, vivacious Clinton took the stage at the Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto on schedule Saturday afternoon, only hours after appearing at the Boston funeral of U.S. Sen. Ted Kennedy.

Using examples from town hall meetings held across the U.S., Clinton tried to explain why his country was so reluctant to change the way it delivers health care.

Clinton said in the U.S., there were "incentives to keep people misinformed and full of fear."

Clinton also addressed the divide between people living in urban areas and people in poverty-stricken rural communities like those in Canada's north, calling it "a pattern repeated throughout the world."

.Still, Saturday's crowd was the largest Clinton had ever addressed in Canada.

The former president spoke for about half an hour before taking questions.